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Lillian Skinner

Infracognition vs. Metacognition


Enjoy this cute Pic of a Fox for it is unrelated to this Chart.

A side-by-side chart comparing the processes of metacognition and infracognition.

Metacognition

Infracognition

1. Planning: Setting goals and strategies

1. Sensory-Emotional Integration: Immediate tagging of sensory input with emotional information

2. Monitoring: Tracking progress and comprehension

2. Intuitive Pattern Recognition: Rapid, subconscious identification of patterns

3. Evaluating: Assessing effectiveness of strategies

3. Embodied Simulation: Mental simulation using bodily states and sensations

4. Reflecting: Thinking about one's own thinking

4. Pre-verbal Conceptualization: Formation of concepts before articulation

5. Regulating: Adjusting strategies based on evaluation

5. Emotional-Somatic Resonance: Body's physical response to stimuli

6. Problem-solving: Consciously working through challenges

6. Implicit Learning Integration: Incorporation of implicitly learned information

7. Decision-making: Consciously weighing options

7. Intuitive Synthesis: Combining information to form new insights without deliberation

Summary:

Metacognition is a conscious, deliberate process that involves thinking about one's own thinking. It follows a structured approach of planning, monitoring, evaluating, reflecting, regulating, problem-solving, and decision-making. These processes are typically slow, methodical, and often verbalized.

Infracognition, on the other hand, is a subconscious, intuitive process that integrates sensory, emotional, and cognitive elements. It involves rapid sensory-emotional integration, intuitive pattern recognition, embodied simulation, pre-verbal conceptualization, emotional-somatic resonance, implicit learning integration, and intuitive synthesis. These processes are typically fast, non-verbal or pre-verbal, and deeply connected to bodily sensations and emotions.

The key difference lies in the level of consciousness and the speed of processing. While metacognition is a conscious, strategic approach to thinking, infracognition operates at a subconscious level, integrating bodily sensations, emotions, and implicit learning into cognitive processes.


Sources validating these processes:

  1. Metacognition:

  • Flavell, J. H. (1979). Metacognition and cognitive monitoring: A new area of cognitive-developmental inquiry. American Psychologist, 34(10), 906-911.

  • Schraw, G., & Moshman, D. (1995). Metacognitive theories. Educational Psychology Review, 7(4), 351-371.

  1. Infracognition:

  • Mottron, L., Dawson, M., Soulières, I., Hubert, B., & Burack, J. (2006). Enhanced perceptual functioning in autism: An update, and eight principles of autistic perception. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 36(1), 27-43.

  • Damasio, A. R. (1996). Descartes' Error: Emotion, Reason, and the Human Brain. Quill.

  • Barrett, L. F. (2020). Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

  • Shapiro, L. (2019). Embodied Cognition. Routledge.

  • Wilson, M. (2002). Six views of embodied cognition. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 9(4), 625-636.

 

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